Desire
by jilted colours
Summary: When the Gryffindor by the name of Neville Longbottom stumbles upon the Mirror of Erised, he's in for a surprise at the image inside the mirror.


**Well, readers, this is definitely a change for me. I never**_**dreamed**___**that I would write anything Neville-related but this was written for the**_**Mirror Mirror**___**challenge I entered and he was what I got. I know this isn't exactly correct time-wise, or anything-wise for that matter, but bear with me here.**

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns the Harry Potter universe****and me****but I own the content.**

**Desire**

The room was silent, as to be expected, seeing as Madam Pince refused to let so much as a whisper be detected in the area. However, the grumpy librarian was nowhere to be seen. That might be how the round-faced boy managed to pluck up the unexpected courage to wander into the Restricted section. Despite being a Gryffindor, he was never the bravest soul to linger within the magical school known as Hogwarts. A sudden urge that had to have implanted itself within the depths of his mind at some point resurfaced and he had acted on impulse, and so, he had snuck away long enough to appear in the library.

It was frigid where the books of Hogwarts dwelled, as proven by the very large, frozen fingers he now had. He could barely feel them, which was rather uncharacteristic if one would go up to him and ask. Maybe it was the fact that the fear of being caught continued to loiter in his mind, maybe it was because he had went to the _Restricted_section of all areas, he wasn't too sure; all he knew was that this feeling of ice wasn't exactly the most preferred feeling to have felt at that moment. At least he had gained the courage, and that was what counted the most.

His feet absently continued to lead him down the mini-corridors created by the endless bookshelves that lined this closed off section of the library, and although it was dark outside, nothing could top the dreariness that radiated from the Restricted section. The books were intimidating and dark, the bookshelves loomed over him as if they would suddenly come to life and attack him, assault his soul along with the rest of him until there were scattered remains of a slightly tubby boy's sinew among other body parts strewn carelessly on the library ground.

Rumors had flown through the school faster than the owls did while they delivered and received messages about a particular object that made its home in the dark, deep pits of the Restricted section. Oddly enough, this had managed to spark an interest in him like no other. Perhaps this was why he had taken on this self-assigned task of finding it to see if the rumors were true. The rumors could be just that—rumors—but there could be so much to gain if _he_were the one to find out. If he found this ancient artifact that was hidden from sight, one could only begin to _dream_of the perks he would receive. Hell, perks was probably a modest way to state it.

He dug his hands into the pockets of his robes, fishing through them until his right hand rested on a long, wooden object. Sighing with relief, he pulled the wand out and held it in front of him, murmuring a simple "_Lumos_" to it. A light appeared at the tip of the object, causing him to feel a bit more reassured. The path seemed to illuminate to a great extent in front of him, ultimately making his confidence skyrocket to a point where he was less worried about being caught and more focused on reaching his target. That is, if there really _was_a target that existed to begin with.

A gasp left his lips as he neared it—there it was, it really was there, right in front of him—there was no denying the overjoyed emotion that overtook him. He couldn't believe it, it had to be dream; there was no other way to explain it. He had gone looking to see if it was truly there, though he hadn't expected it to actually be there, towering over him. He had decided long ago that he figured he was set on a wild goose chase. Clearly, his effort hadn't gone to waste, for this wild goose chase wasn't a wild goose chase at all, but rather, a chase for something he wanted more than he thought.

"_Nox_," he murmured softly, watching as the dim light from the tip of his wand diminished, leaving the light that went out make it dark again. He hadn't even prepared for this; going into it, he hadn't been sure what to expect. His eyes were on his feet, which he drew away and let his gaze relax itself on the object in front of him. It was that mirror, the mirror that was supposed to show him his deepest desires. His mouth hung open slightly as he looked into it, the image reflecting in a way that could've convinced anyone that it was real and not some sort of trick.

His grandmother—Augusta Longbottom—stood there with a brilliant smile on her face, one that radiated pride from every pore and cell on her body. She stood with her arm wrapped around a man, whose arm was snaked around another woman to his right. That…that was his parents, he realized, and that was his grandmother. Alice Longbottom standing next to her husband, Frank Longbottom, all three of them smiling happily at him, all of them sharing smiles of pride. All he had wanted, as it seems, was acceptance from his grandmother and his parents to be given back to him, the parents he never met. He frequently took trips with his father's mother to visit them at St. Mungo's, but that was nothing like standing in front of them face-to-face. Not in the slightest.

His eyes were wide and he blinked. When he looked back at it, he was baffled to find another figure had manifested in the image within the mirror. Instead, on the other side of his mother stood a pallid girl with white-blonde hair that was oddly staring off into space, looking not at him, but as if she could see right _through_him. Like she could tell what lay behind his exterior. Not once in his life would Neville Longbottom have expected the image Luna Lovegood to show up in the Mirror of Erised when he looked inside of it. He hardly knew her as it was, but he couldn't deny how attractive the Ravenclaw was, even if she was a bit bonkers, or so they said.

He took a step closer, and then another one until he was aligned with the mirror. His hand reached out and touched the cool surface of the mirror. His pudgy fingers were met with the light blonde's hand reaching out, touching the other side. He couldn't help the exhilaration he felt as he did so, though he felt absolutely crestfallen when he was met with the mirror and not her hand. The mirror was so deceiving, he was almost sure that this magical object would help him seek his desires long enough for him to fully interact with them.

"This isn't real, is it?" he asked, watching as Luna peered at him inquisitively.

"Yes, this image is manifested and doesn't exist, but that doesn't mean it's not real, Neville," she told him, her breathy, airy voice reminding him of something peaceful and serene that seemed to float in the air. He couldn't help the ecstasy that ran coldly through his veins, as if the jolt of electricity would make things clearer.

Neville couldn't help but notice that this ought to have been classic Luna, sending cryptic messages that no one but a Ravenclaw could decode. He wasn't the most brilliant student, which was why he hadn't been put in her house, but as he mulled over her theory, it all suddenly seemed to snap and make sense to him.

He heard a bit of rustling, ultimately causing a look of shock to cross over his features as he instinctively pulled his hand away from the mirror. Someone—Madam Pince no doubt—was passing by and if he was caught in here, he would be in too much trouble to comprehend. He didn't want to leave, not at all; in fact, he wanted to sit cross-legged in front of the mirror and speak to these illusions in front of him all night, and he would if he could but alas, this wasn't manageable. He had to make a note to come back, though, because perhaps he would gain a sense of clarity from it. Perhaps his desires would change and he would no longer want what he did now.

"I have to go. Goodbye," he murmured, waving ever-so-slightly at the images in front of him. Luna beamed brilliantly and he couldn't help but notice that the most unexpected person was the only one who spoke to him throughout this whole visit. Maybe next time, it would change. Nevertheless, this image was engrained in his brain now, more than he thought it would. For the short period of time he had spent around the mirror, he had become absolutely enchanted and enraptured by it. The mirror managed to become the object of his attention, if only for a little while. The three people in the mirror waved back at him and despite the disappointment he felt, his expression soon turned into one where he was smiling widely, now having the inspiration.

Neville had to get out of there soon, after all, it was going to take him a lot of time and effort if he wanted to capture Luna's attention.

**Whoa, so this turned out different in comparison to the idea I had originally, but I liked it a lot.**

**Read and review?**


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